LibraryThing vs NetGalley Shelf
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
LibraryThing
Catalog your personal book, DVD, and CD collections. Easily add items by searching or scanning barcodes. Enhance your catalog with high-resolution cover photos and browse your collection visually.
- Catalog books, DVDs, and CDs
- Search for media items
- Scan ISBN barcodes
- Add high-resolution cover photos
- Browse collection by cover type
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The LibraryThing app allows LibraryThing members to catalog and browse their collections. LibraryThing is focused on books, but you can add most media, including books, DVDs and CDs. LibraryThing relies on data from Amazon, and over 65 million library records. Add books by searching for them or scanning their ISBN barcode with the camera. Add high-resolution cover photos of your books with the cover editor and browse your books by cover type to find copies that need better covers.
NetGalley Shelf
Access and review digital books and audiobooks provided by publishers and authors. Discover new titles, download them for offline reading, or stream audiobooks directly within the app. This platform is designed for book advocates and industry professionals to provide valuable feedback.
- Access digital review copies
- Listen to audiobooks
- Download books for offline reading
- Stream audiobooks
- Discover new titles
- Request and review books
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NetGalley Shelf is a reading and listening app for NetGalley members. NetGalley helps publishers and authors promote digital review copies and audiobooks to book advocates and industry professionals. Publishers make digital review copies and audiobooks available for the NetGalley community to discover, request, read, and review. NetGalley does not sell any content, including books or audiobooks. Each book on NetGalley is provided to specific members by the publisher directly, at no cost to the NetGalley member. Books on the NetGalley site are used for review and promotional purposes only. Users of the NetGalley Shelf app will need to register as NetGalley members on NetGalley.com or NetGalley.co.uk, then all your approved NetGalley books and audiobooks will automatically appear in this app. No need to press Download on the NetGalley website! Reading is easy and convenient using the NetGalley Shelf app. Download approved books for access on the go, or start listening right away with streaming for audiobooks.
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is rating: LibraryThing at 3.5 against NetGalley Shelf's 2.1. LibraryThing also leads on update cadence (every 4 weeks vs every 6 months) and review sentiment (47% vs 20%). On price, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Both are free to download. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
LibraryThing holds the better App Store score, 3.5 against 2.1. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 278 and 83 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 47% of LibraryThing's written reviews are positive against 20% of NetGalley Shelf's.
LibraryThing ships an update every 4 weeks, NetGalley Shelf every 6 months. The most recent releases landed on October 16, 2026 and October 15, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | LibraryThing | NetGalley Shelf |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Free |
| Rating | 3.5 (278 ratings) — better | 2.1 (83 ratings) |
| Positive reviews | 47.2% of reviews — better | 19.9% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 278 — better | 83 |
| Update frequency | Every 4 weeks — better | Every 6 months |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Free | Free |
| Best chart rank | #193 | #92 — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPod | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better |
| Requires iOS | 11.0 — better | 15.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 9 MB | 24 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | LibraryThing.com | NetGalley, LLC |
Customer experience
LibraryThing
NetGalley Shelf
User reviews
LibraryThing
From 278 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Quick barcode scanning
- 👍 Useful for cataloging library
- 🚀 Fast book addition
Room to improve
- 🐛 Glitches and crashes
- 🔍 Limited search and editing capabilities
- 🤖 Outdated and dated UI
NetGalley Shelf
From 83 App Store ratingsWhat we love
- 🚀 Works fine for some users
- 👍 Keeps user logged in
- 👍 Audiobooks work well
- 🚀 Able to read ebooks
Room to improve
- 🐛 Narration speed issues
- 🐛 Confusing interface
- 🔒 Login issues
- 🐛 Bookmarks and positions don't sync
- 🐛 No built-in dictionary
Bugs and requests
LibraryThing
Reported bugs
3 issues- Barcode scanner not working
- Books disappearing from catalog
- Editing and saving issues
Requested features
4 requests- Ability to create custom collections
- Offline access to library
- Integration with other book apps
- Lending/loan tracking feature
NetGalley Shelf
Reported bugs
5 issues- Login issues
- Downloading issues with audiobooks
- Books disappearing from shelf
- Inability to remove expired books
- Inconsistent behavior when opening books
Requested features
7 requests- Add ability to write reviews within the app
- Improve audiobook playback controls
- Add font size adjustment
- Implement dark mode
- Sync reading progress across devices
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- Add highlighting and note-taking features
- Improve organization and sorting of books
In-app purchases
LibraryThing
No in-app purchases
NetGalley Shelf
No in-app purchases
Questions
Is LibraryThing free?
Is NetGalley Shelf free?
Which has better reviews, LibraryThing or NetGalley Shelf?
Do LibraryThing or NetGalley Shelf have ads?
Which is updated more often, LibraryThing or NetGalley Shelf?
Which is more popular, LibraryThing or NetGalley Shelf?
Other comparisons
